Needletime / Pay for Play

South African legislators will soon begin debating the introduction of a performance/broadcast right in sound recordings: generally known as needletime. In many countries where this has been applied, the right has been one shared by producers (record companies) as well as performers. The latest WIPO treaties also go this route.

I was wondering if anyone has done research in this area and could answer the following question:

How has the performance right in a sound recording (needletime) come to include performers' rights to receive a percentage of the appropriate royalty for the broadcast of the sound recording? If the owner of the copyright in a sound recording is the producer, why is it not the exclusive right of the author to authorise performance thereof? How did this come to be a right which benefits producers and performers? Is there a historical/theoretical basis for this?

Thanks

Bradley Silver
Webber Wentzel Bowens
http://www.wwb.co.za/
<bradleys[_at_]wwb.co.za> Received on Mon Jul 19 1999 - 14:07:20 GMT